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Local motion processing in the optic tectum of the Japanese toad, Bufo japonicus

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Summary

The results of previous behavioral studies can be so interpreted that the prey-catching behavior in the toad is elicited if there is a ‘local’ motion restricted with-in a small part of the visual field, while it is suppressed if there is a ‘global’ motion over a large part of the visual field. This has led us to design experiments to answer a specific question (yet a very essential one for understanding neural processes underlying this behavior): Are there ‘local motion detectors’ in the toad's visual system that are not activated by ‘global’ motion over a large part of the visual field but are activated by ‘local’ motion confined within a smaller part of it? The present study showed that (1) the majority of the toad's tectal neurons exhibit properties of the ‘local motion detectors’ as defined above, and (2) these properties can be explained from the receptive field structure revealed in the present experiments. Based on these results, we suggest that the tectal ‘local motion detectors’ are essential for the detection and localization of small moving prey-objects in the natural environment while ignoring the large moving objects or the self-induced motion of the visual field.

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Abbreviations

ERF :

excitatory receptive field

G1-5 :

group 1–5 neurons

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Author notes

  1. Atsushi Shiraishi

    Present address: Space System Section, Integrated Systems Department, Space Technology Development Group, Fujitsu Ltd., 1015 Kamiodanaka, Nakahara-ku, 211, Kawasaki, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Information Science, Graduate School of Integrated Science, Yokohama City University, 22-2 Seto, Kanazawa-ku, 236, Yokohama, Japan

    Masahiko Satou & Atsushi Shiraishi

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  1. Masahiko Satou
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  2. Atsushi Shiraishi
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Satou, M., Shiraishi, A. Local motion processing in the optic tectum of the Japanese toad, Bufo japonicus . J Comp Physiol A 169, 569–589 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00193547

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